Energy saving heat pumps have begun to bump gas and heating oil out of the home energy picture, and industry stakeholders are determined to keep the momentum going. In the latest development, the up-and-coming heat pump startup Quilt has joined forces with the energy hub Palmetto to evaporate the up-front cost of installing the equipment. Busting Through The Heat Pump Clutter Despite the heat in their name, heat pumps can cool as well as heat, running on electricity instead of traditional HVAC systems that run on gas or heating oil. They are also more energy efficient than conventional baseboard electric heating systems. However, in past years they were not particularly suitable for use in cold climates, limiting their uptake in many parts of the US. That changed during the Biden administration, after a group of legacy manufacturers participated in a federally funded program aimed at improving the performance of heat pumps in cold climates. The effort was a rousing success, opening up vast new swaths of the US to heat pumps and sending sales through the roof. According to the Building Decarbonization Coalition, heat pumps outsold gas furnaces for the fourth year in a row in 2025. Last year the industry also showed its muscle in the cooling market, too. In September of 2025, heat pumps racked up more sales than traditional air conditioners, the first such achievement in a single month. Quilt aims to bust through the clutter with some improvements of its own. According to the company, its room-by-room, occupant-sensitive system is 20% more energy efficient than its industry peers, 80% more efficient than traditional cooling systems, and 400% more efficient than traditional heating systems. The new technology impressed a laundry list of investors in a Series A round of funding in 2024, including included Lowercarbon Capital, Gradient Ventures, MCJ Collective, Garage Capital, and Incite Ventures. With additional funding, the pot grew to $64 million by last December (to hear from Quilt CEO Paul Lambert himself, check out CleanTechnica’s podcast). The Role Of The Contractor Technology aside, Quilt has also developed a business model that leverages installation partners with certification and workforce training. The payoff has been swift. The startup launched in 2024, and by December of 2025 it assembled a roster of about 60 partners covering 16 US states and five Canadian provinces. Less than six months later, the number of North American partners currently tops 130, covering 40 states and six provinces, with Quilt being available in 34 of the 40 states. The partner model dovetails with other energy transition programs aimed at accelerating heat pump uptake. In Colorado, for example, the $200 million “Power Ahead Colorado” program aims to dismantle barriers to adoption on both the consumer and contractor end. “Prospective buyers can be put off by financial limitations and the unknowns of identifying a reliable contractor, while contractors need help breaking through the customer confidence barrier. Recruiting a skilled workforce in a growing industry is another contractor challenge that can gum up the works,” CleanTechnica observed earlier this year. No Up-Front Costs The new Palmetto hookup provides Quilt with a fresh opportunity to convince heat pump-curious consumers to make the switch. In a press statement on May 27, Lambert noted that “great products don’t help if homeowners can’t afford the switch.” “Partnering with Palmetto changes that. One monthly plan covers everything from installation to annual maintenance, so the decision to upgrade your home is finally an easy one,” Lambert emphasized. “That’s how you turn interest into action.” The new partnership makes the Palmetto Comfort Plan available to Quilt’s certified partners, in areas where both companies have a footprint. The plan folds installation, maintenance, annual service and extended warranty into a monthly payment. If that’s beginning to sound like a solar lease plan, it is. Palmetto got its start in the residential solar business. In 2023 the company closed on a $150 million in vestment from TPG Rise Climate, enabling it to ramp up operations. “Palmetto manages the end-to-end residential solar process with a fully enabled operating platform that handles sales, design, engineering, permitting and fulfillment. The company is uniquely positioned to help its partners reduce soft costs, which oftentimes represent over 50% of each residential solar project, using automated workflows, predictive algorithms, and local intelligence data,” the company explained in a press statement. With its solar lease experience in hand, Palmetto launched the Comfort Plan for HVAC systems last fall. As described on the company’s website, the lease term for a heat pump system is 10 years. When it expires, customers have the option to buy out the system, or renew at a lower rate. Customers can also start fresh with a new lease on a new system. More Heat Pumps For The USA The financing hump is not the only hurdle limiting uptake. Earlier this year the Building Decarbonization Coalition took note of permitting obstacles that also get in the way. The organization zeroed in on California, where BDC counts more than 600 jurisdictions, with variations in permit types, timelines, inspections, and documentation. “These permitting complexities greatly extend project wait times—even for standard installations—and unpredictability can make it difficult for contractors to give residents accurate time and cost estimates. In some cities, heat pump permit fees may be as little as $50, while in others they can climb to thousands of dollars,” BDC observes. “Plus, homeowners associations may impose additional design, noise, or setback requirements that hinder projects,” they add. As a solution, BDC is pitching an automated permitting and compliance service developed by the California startup Symbium, covering energy upgrades including heat pumps, solar panels, energy storage, and reroofing. The technology has already been adopted in several California cities including Bakersfield, Lancaster, and Ventura, along with hundreds of other clients in and outside of California. Keep an eye on Symbium for more activity in the automated permitting field. In April, the company reported that it nailed down a “significant” though undisclosed investment from the corporate venture firm HearstLab, a branch of the Hearst Corporation that launched in 2015 in support of female entrepreneurs. “The investment marks an important moment in Symbium’s growth as the company continues to strengthen its position in the regulatory technology space, beginning with instant permitting,” Symbium noted. In a press statement, Symbium founder and CEO, Leila Banijamali, Founder and CEO of Symbium provided some additional insights. “Hearst Corporation has long had a meaningful presence in sectors tied to the built environment, including real estate and construction, which makes this partnership especially resonant as Symbium continues strengthening its leadership in instant permitting,” Banijamali explained. HearstLab focuses on business that show strong signs of scalability, so hold on to your hats. Photo: The US startup Quilt is making its indoor and outdoor heat pumps more accessible to homeowners on a budget, in a new partnership with the energy platform Palmetto (cropped, courtesy of Quilt).